press." very good president's day morning to you. right now on "first look," shocking news from the country music world. 37-year-old singer mindy mccready who's been plagued by personal troubles through the years has been found dead of an apparent suicide. republicans lashed out at the obama administration in a leaked draft of the president's immigration reform proposal. danica patrick makes history in daytona. a new hope for han solo. and the nation's greatest presidents immortalized in cheddar? very good morning to you. nice to see you this morning. i'm veronica de la cruz. the world of country music has lost a memorable voice. mindy mccready dolphin of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. she sold more than three million

albums overshadowed by alcohol abuse and stints in rehab. >> reporter: mindy mccready started her rise to stardom in 1996 with her debut album "10,000 angels" which would go on to earn multi-platinum status. in the years that followed she would release a total of four more albums, charting 12 songs on the billboard country singles chart. from the first rapid climb to fame it would be more her private life that droeft headlines. the embattled singer had multiple stays in rehab facilities and multiple run-ins with the law through much of the 2000s, including a charge of driving under the influence, using fake prescriptions, battery, and violating probation. and recently following the death of her music producer david wilson in january, mccready was involuntarily admitted to an inpatient treatment facility. a day later the troubled celebrity was released to outpatient treatment. in the last interview with

nbc's andrea canning, the singer spoke of how wilson's death had affected her. >> he was my life. we were each other's life. >> reporter: mindy mccready was 37 years old. she leaves behind two young children. we are learning more details about the shocking murder case against olympic hero oscar pistorius. police in south africa have charged the track star with the premeditated murder of her girlfriend reeva steenkamp inside his home on valentine's day. an agent for pistorius canceled all future track races raising the possibility that the double amputee who ran into history the summer games never will race competitively again. as the jail blade runner receives visits from his family, his agent says big-name sponsors like nike and oakley are also sticking by his side. the gop is lashing out against a white house immigration plan leaked over the weekend. senator marco rubio called it "half baked and seriously

flawed." the white house says it's a backup plan in case others stumble in theirests. >> reporter: immigration is one of the issues that sparks democrats and republicans. while eight senators are finishing a bipartisan bill, "usa today" reveals the white house has been working on a backup plan if the current efforts fall apart. >> if those do not work out, then we'll have an option that will be ready to put out there. >> reporter: president obama's chief of staff says the white house proposal would bolster border security and include a path to citizenship for this nation's 11 million undocumented immigrants. republicans say any plan with the president's name on it is bound to fail. >> of course it will. and that's why we are working together, republicans and democrats. by the way, he's had no communications with republicans on the issue, unlike the previous four presidents that i've dealt with. >> reporter: senator john mccain is one of the so-called gang of eight lawmakers working on the bipartisan bill.

so is florida republican marco rubio who says the president's plan won't work. other members of the gop are not happy to see the white house weighing in. >> when they come out and adamantly say my way or the highway and if congress doesn't ask i'll put it on the desk and say "pass it now," that's no way to get it done. >> reporter: the white house is ready to press ahead with immigration reform if congress can't or won't act. brian mooar, nbc news, washington. president obama's nominee to run the pentagon will have to wait at least another week for an up or down vote in the senate. but it now appears chuck hagel will get that vote when senators return. at least two top republicans say they will stop efforts to stall his confirmation. that filibuster came a day after hagel was approved by the armed services by a party-line vote. one of his most vocal opponents says while he doesn't believe hagel is qualified, he won't hold up the process. >> i thought we had an agreement

to wait a week so the remaining questions would be answered, but i understand the white house wanted a vote. they got a vote. we will have a vote when we get back. i'm confident that senator hagel will probably have the votes necessary to be confirmed as the secretary of defense. >> the gop it says blocked hagel's nomination in an effort to further examine his record and views on israel and iran. senate majority leader harry reid hopes to bring a final vote to the floor when congress goes back in session next monday. residents in coastal new england are cleaning up after yet another blast of winter weather following the big blizzard last weekend. parts of the northeast including massachusetts got up to six inches of snow on sunday. the winter snowstorm then headed north into maine, carrying with it strong, gusty winds and low visibility. now here is your "first look" at this morning's dish of scrambled politicians. lindsay gram says congress should save money by cutting back on the affordable care act,

otherwise known as obama care instead of allowing automatic cuts on defense. the video of republican candidate mitt romney telling donors about the 47% of americans who are victims played a big part in the 2012 election. david corn got that recording and wrote the story, now he has won the george polk award. and new york ads focusing on toy hutchenson has decided to drop her bid for the u.s. house seat held by u.s. jesse jackson junior. robmarco rubio's response t the state of the union made headlines for his watergate moment when he had to have that drink of water. ""saturday night livsaturday n"

that gaffe. >> yes, i have to admit it's a little aggravating, seth. i mean, so what. my mouth got a little dry and i took a drink of water. i don't see what big deal is. we've all been there. you're about to give an important policy speech. you get a little nervous in the green room and you eat a whole bag of dry-roasted peanuts and jerky. there are hot lights on you, the room isn't ventilated. you do what anyone would do, you suddenly lunge to the side, all the while holding awkward eye contact with the camera and take a drink from the tiniest bottle of water anyone has ever seen. >> and that is your morning dish of scrambled politics. >> ouch. >> that is hysterical. hang on. i have to -- >> you have your little sip?

do you have a lucky unitard? >> i don't. >> you keep drinking. >> you do the weather. >> that storm that rocketed past new england yesterday, very impressive stuff it was just as strong as the blizzard we had the weekend before, but it was further off the coast. most locations say like providence and boston, three to four inches of snow. out on cape kcod we had six-inc reports. watch it develop here and it slammed into nova scotia. it's still spinning up there. that's why it's windy this morning. a lot of people did lose power on the coastline. hopefully they're getting it back. the winds are starting to die down. we have a lot of 30-mile-per-hour reports. down into the 20s from new york city to cape cod it was a cold air mass behind us. windchills were brutal yesterday. they're still not fun this

morning. everyone in new england is in the negative numbers. that's the white shading. minus 10 in albany. thankfully we don't have people out on the bus stops this morning. if you have to go out this morning you want the long johns and everything. the next storm is coming down. cold and windy up in north dakota and minnesota. as far as that storm, i want to show you this final image here. here is cape cod. this here is what almost looked like an eye of the storm. it was that power official a winter storm. it almost had the appearance of what we see for hurricane season. thank goodness no more of these coming. >> wow. you missed it, bill, i was trying to hand you a bottle of water there. i was off -- >> next time. >> next time. coming up next on "first look," another chicago teen shooting tragedy. thousands march on the national mall and jfk history goes up for sale. and being the leader of the free world does have its perks. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. my insurance rates are probably gonna double.

but, dad, you've got... [ voice of dennis ] allstate. with accident forgiveness, they guarantee your rates won't go up just because of an accident. smart kid. [ voice of dennis ] indeed. are you in good hands? is moving backward. [ engine turns over, tires squeal ] and you'll find advanced safety technology like an available heads-up display on the 2013 lexus gs. there's no going back. it's delicious.

so now we've turned her toffee into a business. my goal was to take an idea and make it happen. i'm janet long and i formed my toffee company through legalzoom. i never really thought i would make money doing what i love. [ robert ] we created legalzoom to help people start their business and launch their dreams. go to legalzoom.com today and make your business dream a reality. at legalzoom.com we put the law on your side. you may be muddling through allergies. try zyrtec-d®. powerful relief of nasal congestion and other allergy symptoms -- all in one pill. zyrtec-d®. at the pharmacy counter. and other allergy symptoms -- all in one pill. ♪ a flavor paradisens aof delicious fishes ♪♪ ♪ friskies seafood sensations. ♪ ♪ feed the senses.

good morning. welcome back. some stories making news now. the national mall was the site of a massive protest sunday against the controversial keystone exxon pipeline. organizers at the climate event estimate 35,000 people turned out in washington. the demonstrators called on president obama to keep a pledge and act on climate change. at least three dozen people were killed sunday during a wave of bombings in iraq. six car bombs and three roadside explosions targeted mainly shiite neighborhoods of baghdad. venezuelan president hugo chavez is back in his home country after medical treatment abroad. two men are being questioned in the shooting death of a chicago area teen. 18-year-old jenae macfarland was killed in north chicago on the same day her sister attend ed president obama's speech on gun violence. and memorabilia from the kennedy presidency was up for auction over the weekend outside boston. the president's air force one bomber jacket went for a cool

$570,000. other items on the block included letters from former first lady jackie kennedy as well as photographs and some books. a quick program note here, with the tenth ann visit of the iraq invasion one month away, tonight at 9:00, a new msnbc documentary hosted by rachel mad do you that details how faulty intelligence was held up as hard fact in an effort to lead america into war. u.s. markets are closed for the presidents' day holiday. when traders get back to work this week, the housing recovery will be a big focus. fresh home builders sentiment comes out tomorrow, housing starts wednesday, existing home sales thursday. investors will also be on the hunt for some clarity from the fed. the release of its last meeting minutes. the question is whether there's been any more talk of ending its easy money policy. also on deck, walmart's earnings report. speculation is swirling after bloomberg quoted an internal e-mail saying walmart's february sales were "total disaster." gold will also be on the radar

this week. the recent market darling has tumbled to a six-month low, shedding 4% already this year. prices at the pump have been on the rise each of the past 29 days, rising seven cents this week to a national average of $3.64 a gallon, 12 cents more than last year. a strike by a major spanish airline could ground more than 1,000 flights this week. workers at iberia began a five-day strike at midnight over plans to cut more than 3,800 jobs and salaries. bmw is recalling almost 570,000 cars in the u.s. and canada because a battery connector can fail and cause the engine to stall. after a backlash from customers, maker's mart is restoring its alcohol volume in whiskey to 45%. this after last week's announcement that a supply shortage would force it to dilute the amount to 42%. and on this presidents' day, which of our nation's leaders was the wealthiest?

george washington was not only the first but the richest president beating out thomas jefferson and teddy roosevelt by several hundred million dollars. coming up, a half-court shot worth much more than three points. and four adorable lion cubs make their debut at a seattle zoo. what would you do if a stranger slapped your baby during a flight? it happened. now an idaho man faces charges, that story next. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. [ male announcer ] why is kellogg's crunchy nut so delicious?

because every flake is double-toasted... splashed with sweet honey... and covered in rich double-roasted peanuts. mmm. [ hero ] yummy. [ male announcer ] kellogg's crunchy nut. it's super delicious! in the middle of the night it can be frustrating. it's hard to turn off and go back to sleep. intermezzo is the first and only prescription sleep aid approved for use as needed in the middle of the night when you can't get back to sleep. it's an effective sleep medicine you don't take before bedtime. take it in bed only when you need it and have at least four hours left for sleep. do not take intermezzo if you have had an allergic reaction to drugs containing zolpidem, such as ambien. allergic reactions such as shortness of breath or swelling of your tongue or throat may occur and may be fatal. intermezzo should not be taken if you have taken another sleep medicine at bedtime or in the middle of the night or drank alcohol that day. do not drive or operate machinery until at least 4 hours after taking intermezzo

and you're fully awake. driving, eating, or engaging in other activities while not fully awake without remembering the event the next day have been reported. abnormal behaviors may include aggressiveness, agitation, hallucinations, or confusion. alcohol or taking other medicines that make you sleepy may increase these risks. in depressed patients, worsening of depression, including risk of suicide, may occur. intermezzo, like most sleep medicines, has some risk of dependency. common side effects are headache, nausea, and fatigue. so if you suffer from middle-of-the-night insomnia, ask your doctor about intermezzo and return to sleep again. ♪ hi victor! mom? i know you got to go in a minute but this is a real quick meal, that's perfect for two! campbell's chunky beef with country vegetables, poured over rice! [ male announcer ] campbell's chunky soup. it fills you up right.

lawmakers are on recess this week but will have a full calendar when they go back into session they will have to take up confirmation votes on chuck hagel, immigration reform and budget cut also also have to be tackled. joining us now is boris epstein, opinion columnist. thank you for joining us. >> thank you for having me. >> we want to start with chuck hagel. some top republicans admit he has the votes to be confirmed. what's the hold up? why bother putting this off? >> he will likely be confirmed. but there are serious concerns about the statements hoos made in the past and position he's taken. this is the right move by republicans up to now to show opposition and hold up the nomination. at this point in time it

probably makes sense to let the vote go through and let him be confirmed, after all, the elections spoke -- the american people spoke in the elections and they elected the majority in the senate for the democrats. as republicans we don't want to be seen as obstructionists. having spoken, having strong opposition, now it's time to move on and tackle more important issues like immigration. >> talking about immigration, congress is out this week on recess. so after the hagel confirmation what is the next big thing on the plate? is it immigration? >> from the republican standpoint, learning again from the last election, i think that should be immigration. overall we need a solution to the illegal immigration problem. if we can, we need to lead on that standpoint, on that issue. i think we will do so. we have some new senators coming

in ready to lead on it as well as senators who have been there a long time, like senator mccain, ready to move on immigration. that needs to be the next issue. >> boris epshteyn, thank you. >> have a good day. here's your "first look" at some other news. in north carolina, a 40,000 gallon ethanol tank burst into flames. officials believe it was sparked by lightning. the blast rattled homes over two miles away. in minneapolis, a baby is recovering from a horrific attack. the 19-month-old was allegedly called the "n" word and slapped enjoy a passenger during a plate to atlanta. the child's mother says joe rick hundley became irate over her son's crying. the 60-year-old has been arrested on federal assault charges and suspended from his job. it was show time in seattle for a litter of south african

lion cubs. the two sisters and two brothers made their debut at the woodland park zoo. the 3-month-old siblings spent their first outing thrilled with the crowd who loved their curiosity and they're exploring the enclosure. finally, a new york city museum found a cheesy way to celebrate president's day. ripley's believe it or not recently unveiled a mt. rushmore sculpture made of cheddar cheese. a master carver used four blocks of cheese to sculpt the 160-pound replica. moving on to sports now, we start with the nba all-star game. a high-scoring game, the east and west teams stayed within a few points of each other most of the time. in the fourth quarter, blake griffin of the clippers bounced the ball off the backboard and dunked it. the west wins 143-138. an upset in college ball as number 20 wisconsin rolled over number 13 ohio state. the badgers beat the buckeyes by 22 points. 71-49. nascar driver danica patrick makes history as the first woman to win pole position for next

week's daytona 500 or any sprint cup race. four-time champ jeff gordon finished with the second best this time. patrick gets the coveted starting spot. in canada, the basketball coach of brandon university basketball took a half-court shot and he makes it. the prize was a semester of free tuition for a student smart enough to choose the right person to take that shot. now for another look of the weather, here is bill karins with the cweather channel forecast. i saw you, you were like man. >> i did one of those. >> and you -- >> i hit the backboard. i had to pay for my tuition. the winds are brutal up in new england. temperatures are in the negative numbers for windchills. single digits down to baltimore this morning. it's a cold morning. it will be better this morning.

the winds will come down and it will feel nicer than yesterday. still cold by february standards, below normal temperatures. just rain developing in the central plains and rain in minnesota to watch out for. >> the know is not too bad. it's winter, you can always go sledding. >> he don't this you're sledding. >> not right now. ahead, bruce willis is back on top. and find out what snl had to say about the carnival cruise disaster. great, everybody made it.

we all work remotely so this is a big deal, our first full team gathering! i wanted to call on a few people. ashley, ashley marshall... here. since we're often all on the move, ashley suggested we use fedex office to hold packages for us. great job. [ applause ] thank you. and on a protocol note, i'd like to talk to tim hill about his tendency to use all caps in emails. [ shouting ] oh i'm sorry guys. ah sometimes the caps lock gets stuck on my keyboard. hey do you wanna get a drink later? [ male announcer ] hold packages at any fedex office location.

yeah. then how'd i get this... [ voice of dennis ] ...safe driving bonus check? every six months without an accident, allstate sends a check. ok. [ voice of dennis ] silence. are you in good hands? [ engine turns over ] [ male announcer ] we created the luxury crossover and kept turning the page, writing the next chapter for the rx and lexus. this is the pursuit of perfection.

all right. let's see what's in the news. the pope resigned. oh, lord.

>> wait. okay. here's something fun. north korea successfully launched a nuclear -- nope. >> remember that, the olympic sprinter who ran on blades? >> amazing story. so uplifting. >> well, it says here -- no. no. >> you guys think you might have it bad, do you have it worse than 4,000 stranded on nightmare cruise? that is about us. >> that's us. yeah. that's enough. enough with the headlines. >> man. moving on to entertainment news this morning, the 25-year-old "die hard" franchise showed it still had life at the box office. "a good day to die hard" scored $25 million this week. helping it take the number-one spot, "identity thief" stayed strong while "safe haven" rounded out the top three. and the new star wars movie won't be without han solo. harrison ford has reportedly signed on for the new film.

thanks to -- thanks to what? a large chunk of money? >> if he came back to do indiana jones, he can do this. >> absolutely. >> i'm veronica de la cruz. stay tuned because "way too early" with peter alexander starts right now. good monday morning, i'm peter alexander, this is "way too early," the show that proves every day that makers mark is way too strong. thanks for getting up with us on this monday, february 18th. a lot going on. including new reaction to the white house immigration plan that would pave the path to citizenship within eight years for millions of undocumented workers. a massive protest on climate change in washington as thousands march on the nation's capitol to demand president obama reject the controversial keystone pipeline oil